The Worst Wingman
by arysa13
Summary: Clarke is into Finn, and asks Bellamy to be her wingman. Only he really, really sucks at it.


Bellamy is Clarke's favourite co-worker. Even though she hates working at the café, and she can't wait until she graduates and can actually do something meaningful with her life, if she's working with Bellamy, sometimes she actually looks _forward_ to it.

She'd had a crush on him at first, because how could someone _not_ have a crush on that guy? He had been the one that trained her on her first day, and she'd honestly been left _breathless_ for a moment when she saw him. And of course, she hadn't been able to do anything right that day, because she was all too aware of _him._

He's sweet and gorgeous, and he has this dry kind of humour that matches hers exactly. But he has a girlfriend, because of course he does. So Clarke had had to get over her crush pretty fast. And okay, maybe she still has a _little_ crush on him. But at least it's not debilitating.

It's the quiet part of the morning, and the only people in the café are a couple of women who have been brunching for the last three hours, and a guy using the free wifi to furiously finish his assignment he was supposed to finish last night. Clarke had given him a coffee on the house when he told her that.

"So, what did you do on the weekend, Griffin?" Bellamy asks her, rearranging the muffins in the display case for lack of something better to do.

"Well, I worked, and then I studied, and then I worked, and then I studied and then I went to sleep," Clarke tells him.

"Did you eat?"

"Sporadically."

"Good. If you starved to death who would I talk to at work?" Bellamy grins. He hands her a muffin. "On the house. I know you're a starving student."

"Oh great," Clarke smiles. "My dinner for the week."

Bellamy laughs, and Clarke tries not to feel to pleased with herself. It's always a win when she gets him to laugh.

"And what did you do on the weekend?" she asks.

"Well, Octavia was out the whole weekend so I took the opportunity to lounge around the house all weekend playing video games in my underwear," Bellamy grins. Octavia. The girlfriend. He talks about her _all the time_. And they obviously live together so it must be serious.

"I think I'm going to have to meet this Octavia one day," Clarke muses.

Bellamy looks surprised. "You want to meet her?" he asks. Clarke isn't sure why it's so weird that she'd suggest meeting her friend's girlfriend, but Bellamy seems completely taken aback.

"Yeah," Clarke shrugs. It's no big deal, right?

"Okay," Bellamy agrees. He seems pleased. Excited, even. Or nervous? "Well, maybe we could get together sometime and I could—" Clarke cuts him off, grabbing his arm as Finn the New Guy walks through the front door. "Ow," Bellamy says. "What?"

"I didn't know Finn was working today," Clarke says.

Bellamy shrugs. "Raven called in sick."

"Hey, Finn," Clarke smiles at him as he passes the counter and heads out the back. Finn nods, a dreamy smile on his face.

"Hey, Clarke. Bellamy."

Clarke turns to Bellamy, once she's made sure Finn is out of earshot. "He's hot, right?" she says. Bellamy looks unimpressed.

"If you say so," he says, rolling his eyes.

Finn has only been working there a couple of weeks, but he's already become the new object of Clarke's affection. If she's not allowed to have a crush on Bellamy, Finn is the next best thing.

"Do you think he's into me?" Clarke presses. Bellamy looks pained. He clearly isn't the kind of person who wants to get involved in another person's love life.

"Why don't you ask him?" he huffs.

"Yeah, right," Clarke snorts. "That wouldn't make working with him awkward at all."

Bellamy just looks at her. He shrugs. "I guess you'll never know then."

Clarke sighs, knowing the only real way to know if Finn likes her is to ask him out. But then she gets an idea. "Or…" she starts, and Bellamy already has that look on his face like he knows he isn't going to like this. "You could be my wingman."

"Your wingman," Bellamy repeats flatly.

"Yeah," Clarke says, getting excited by the idea. "We could suggest a friendly group hang outside of work. But then you help me by disappearing for a while and leaving Finn and I alone, and I can figure out if he likes me or not."

"But we never hang out outside of work," Bellamy points out.

"Finn doesn't know that."

Bellamy considers her. She can see his mind working, deciding whether or not to help her. She puts on her best begging face, hoping he can be swayed by her pleading eyes. Whether it works or not, Clarke isn't sure, but a second later he's relenting, blowing out a puff of air in defeat.

"Fine," he agrees. "But you have to organise everything, and you shout me for everything we do, including food and drink."

Clarke grins gleefully. "Thank you!" she exclaims, throwing her arms around him for a moment. "You won't regret it."

"I know," he says. Clarke lets him go, aware the hug has gone on too long, and then skips out the back to invite Finn to the aquarium with her and Bellamy.

* * *

"Why'd you pick the aquarium?" Bellamy asks, the two of them standing outside waiting for Finn to arrive. Clarke has bought their tickets already, and a coffee for Bellamy. He's already making her live up to her promise to pay for everything.

"He's new in town, he probably hasn't been yet," Clarke says. "And it's easy for you to disappear and leave Finn and I alone."

"Right."

"Plus, I really like penguins."

Bellamy looks vaguely amused. "Penguins, huh?"

"Shut up," Clarke says, giving him a soft nudge.

"No, I think it's cute," he laughs. Clarke feels her stomach swoop, and she quickly looks away. "Personally, I prefer seals."

His phone rings then, and Clarke has time to rid herself of the butterflies in her stomach while Bellamy steps away to take the call. _He's not the one your interested in_ , she reminds herself. So what if he likes seals and thinks she's cute? He still has a stupid girlfriend. Clarke would have suggested he bring her today, but then it felt more like a double date than a casual hang out. And she still doesn't know if Finn is into her yet.

"Everything okay?" Clarke asks, as Bellamy returns from his phone call.

"Yeah," he nods. "Just work. Raven called in sick again, they wanted me to cover her shift but I said I couldn't."

"She must be feeling awful," Clarke grimaces.

A moment later, an uber pulls up in front of them, and Finn steps out. Clarke is about to greet him, but his phone starts ringing, and he mouths an apology as he answers it.

"Yeah," Finn says. "Yeah, yeah. It's fine, I'll be right in," he says. Clarke glances at Bellamy and he shrugs. Finn puts his phone in his pocket. He's already giving Clarke an apologetic look. "I'm so sorry," he says. "That was work. Raven called in sick and they want me to cover her shift. I really need the money. You guys don't mind, right?"

Clarke tries not to look too disappointed, despite the fact that her main reason for being here is now bailing. She smiles brightly. "No, of course not. Go, the aquarium will still be here next week."

Finn gives her a grateful smile and gets back into the uber. Clarke turns to Bellamy.

"This is your fault, you know," she scowls.

"My fault? How?"

"If you'd taken the shift it could have just been me and Finn," Clarke points out.

Bellamy grimaces. "Right. Sorry."

Clarke stands there for a moment, unsure what to do next.

"Should we go in then?" Bellamy asks.

"Huh?" she turns to him.

"Well, we already paid," he says. "And you still like penguins, right?"

"Obviously."

"So let's go."

It's not weird or awkward at all, walking around the aquarium with Bellamy, even if it kind of maybe at times feels like a date. They do their best to avoid the school groups, and they spend ages at the penguin exhibit. Bellamy is disappointed there are no seals, but he concedes that penguins are pretty cool too. By the time they reach the gift shop, Clarke is having such a good time she's forgotten Finn was even supposed to be there.

"When are you working next?" Bellamy asks as the two of them finally leave the aquarium after three hours of marvelling over sea life together.

"Umm, Thursday, I think," Clarke says. "I have classes all day tomorrow and Wednesday."

"I'll see you Thursday, then," Bellamy tells her.

"We can brainstorm ways to get Finn to hang out with me," Clarke grins.

Bellamy gives her a slight smile. "I'm sure we can think of something," he says. "By the way," he holds out his hand. "I got you something." He lets a keychain hang from his fingers, on the end, a small fluffy penguin.

"Oh my god," Clarke says, delighted. "That's adorable. Thank you!"

"You're welcome," Bellamy says as Clarke takes the keyring from him.

"What happened to me paying for everything?"

"That still stands. I just thought you might like it."

"I definitely do."

Bellamy smiles. "Okay. I'll see you Thursday."

Clarke nods, already putting the penguin on her set of keys.

* * *

They invite Finn to a movie next. After work hours, so no chance of being called in.

"Do you think he thinks it's weird that we never invite anyone else from work?" Clarke asks. This time she and Bellamy are waiting outside the cinema, tickets in hand.

"I don't think he thinks that much."

Clarke side-eyes him. "You think he's dumb?"

"No, I just think he's too into himself to worry about what's going on around him," Bellamy snorts. Clarke can't help but laugh. Bellamy may not be entirely wrong. After a second thought he adds, "He might think we want a threesome though."

Clarke snorts with laughter, and Bellamy chuckles beside her.

"Hey guys, what's so funny?" Finn interrupts. Clarke hadn't even noticed him arrive.

"Inside joke," she says quickly, at the same time Bellamy says, "Threesomes." Clarke gives him a withering look. If Finn hadn't thought they were angling for a threesome before, he sure as hell does _now_. Bellamy shrugs unapologetically.

"Okay…" Finn says. "Did you guys buy tickets already?"

"Sure did," Clarke says, glad of a change of subject. "Row G, Seats 10 to 12."

The three of them head inside. The plan is that Bellamy will go first, leaving Clarke and Finn to sit next to each other. Clarke had even suggested earlier that he might want to go to the bathroom or to get popcorn partway through the movie, but Bellamy had rejected the idea, saying he didn't want to waste money on a movie he was only going to see half of. Even Clarke's reminder that she's the one paying couldn't change his mind.

As planned, Bellamy goes ahead and finds his seat first. Finn is right behind him.

"Oh, hey man, this is seat ten, we're one over," Finn says, looking at the number on the seat. And then before Bellamy can move over a seat, Finn goes around him, leaving Clarke to take the last seat next to Bellamy. And the whole plot unravels.

Clarke glares at Bellamy as she takes her seat, annoyed that he's screwed it up once again. She doesn't even really want to see this movie, she's only here for Finn.

"I'm sorry," Bellamy whispers, leaning in close, his breath on her ear. Clarke shivers, but she doesn't respond. She just shoves her hand into Bellamy's box of popcorn, since she hadn't bought any for herself, and shovels it into her mouth. Bellamy looks a little terrified.

The movie, as it turns out, isn't that bad, and Clarke actually gets into it. About a quarter way through, Finn gets up to go to the bathroom. Clarke is honestly horrified. As much as she'd tried to push Bellamy into leaving partway through, she's of the opinion that if you need to pee while you're in the cinema, you just hold it.

Bellamy takes Finn's absence as an opportunity to apologise again.

"I really am sorry," he whispers. "We can swap seats if you want."

"He'll notice," Clarke says.

"How can I make it up to you?"

"Give me more popcorn," Clarke tells him, and Bellamy offers her the box. She paid for it after all. It's hard to tell in the dark, but Clarke is pretty sure he's smirking. "And I want the armrest," she adds, putting her arm next to his.

"It's big enough for two," Bellamy replies. "We can share it."

Clarke rolls her eyes, but then Finn returns, so she doesn't argue. Bellamy shifts his arm slightly, and she's sure he must notice how their arms are pressed together. S _he_ certainly notices. She considers moving her arm, but then she figures that's probably what he wants, so she leaves it there. And then she spends the rest of the movie trying not to think about how their arms are touching the whole time, and how he still hasn't moved away, and how easy it would be to slip her hand into his.

This is exactly why she'd wanted to sit next to Finn.

The movie ends, and Clarke has already forgotten what happened in it, but Finn chatters about it the whole way out. She and Bellamy are both uncharacteristically quiet.

"Alright, thanks for the movie guys," Finn says. "See you at work." Then he leaves. Clarke had been going to ask him if he wanted to go for a drink after the movie, but by the time she remembers, he's long gone.

Bellamy turns to her. "You want to grab a drink?" he asks.

"I, uh—" she starts. She's not exactly sure why she's having trouble finding words all of a sudden. Maybe it's because he's standing closer to her than strictly necessary. Maybe it's because her arm is still tingling from his touch. She _does_ want to go for a drink, but she's also feeling a lot like she wants to kiss him, and she thinks it's probably wiser to just go home.

She shakes her head. "I'm kind of tired," she says.

"Okay," Bellamy nods, but he seems disappointed. "See you at work, then."

"See you at work," Clarke agrees.

* * *

"There's a carnival in town this weekend," Bellamy tells Clarke, the next time they work together. "You want to go?"

"With Finn, you mean?"

"Um, sure."

"Okay," Clarke agrees. "But we should invite some other people from work, so he doesn't think we're looking for a threesome."

"Sounds good," Bellamy agrees. "I'll bring Octavia. You can finally meet her."

Clarke hates the way her stomach drops at that. "Okay," she says. "Sounds good," she echoes.

* * *

There's a total of six of them that end up going from work. Clarke, Bellamy, Finn, Raven, Harper, and Jasper. Clarke is the last one to arrive.

"Ferris wheel?" Bellamy suggests, as soon as Clarke has joined them. They haven't discussed a plan yet, but it seems like Bellamy already has one. He takes Clarke by the arm and lets the others go on ahead.

"What's the plan?" Clarke asks.

"We go on the Ferris wheel in pairs. I'll go with Jasper, Raven and Harper can go together, and you just hang at the back with Finn and you guys can go together. Sound good?"

Clarke nods. "Where's Octavia?"

"She'll be here soon," Bellamy says. Then he hurries to catch up with Jasper. Clarke falls into step beside Finn. She opens her mouth to make conversation, but then she realises she has no idea what to say to him. "It's a nice night," she settles on.

"Sure is," Finn agrees. And then they settle into an awkward silence, joining the short line to the Ferris wheel.

As Raven and Harper reach the front of the line, Bellamy steps out, holding up his phone.

"Octavia just got here, I've got to go find her. I'll be right back," he promises, hurrying off.

Raven and Harper are ushered into a carriage and the wheel starts turning again. A minute later it stops. Bellamy still isn't back yet.

"Next two," the attendant calls.

"Which one of you wants to go with me?" Jasper asks. Clarke suddenly realises Bellamy's mistake. She's annoyed at herself for not realising sooner, and when she doesn't say anything, Finn jumps into the carriage with Jasper, leaving Clarke alone, her attempts to spend time with him thwarted once again. She steps out of line, her arms folded and her lips pursed. How could Bellamy have fucked this up _again_?

He returns thirty seconds later, a girl with him. He's lucky she's there or Clarke would be giving him a verbal beat down.

"Clarke," he says. "This is Octavia."

"Hey," Clarke says, holding out her hand for Octavia to shake. She tries not to feel jealous of Octavia's beauty. Dark hair and piercing green eyes, and cheek bones to die for.

"Great to finally meet you," Octavia says. "I've heard _a lot_ about you." She gives Bellamy a knowing glance, and Bellamy rolls his eyes. Clarke isn't sure what that means.

"Oh," Clarke says. "Same."

"He told me about the penguin key ring," Octavia continues. "What a fucking dork, right?"

"Um…"

"Octavia," Bellamy says, warningly. "Can you not?"

"You guys should go on the Ferris wheel," Octavia says, much to Clarke's surprise. "I'm going to get some food. You want anything?"

Clarke shakes her head.

"I'm good," Bellamy says, and Octavia flounces off towards the hotdog van. Bellamy turns to Clarke.

"You fucked it up again," she rolls her eyes. "I can't even be annoyed at you anymore. It's my own fault for continuing to use the worst wingman of all time."

"Sorry," Bellamy says sheepishly. Except he doesn't seem _that_ sorry. "You want to go on?" he gestures to the Ferris wheel.

"I don't even like the Ferris wheel," Clarke huffs.

"Me either," Bellamy agrees. "Let's go play some kind of rigged ring toss game and I'll see if I can win you another penguin," he grins.

"Okay," Clarke concedes. Bellamy grins wider, and he slings his arm around her shoulders, leading her towards the ring toss. Clarke's heat beats rapidly at the contact. It can't _mean_ anything. His girlfriend is only a hundred metres away. Those two have the weirdest relationship Clarke has ever encountered.

He keeps his arm around her shoulders like it's the most natural thing in the world. Clarke makes no move to stop him. He only drops his arm when they reach the ring toss and he has to hand over some money to the attendant.

"Get ready to be impressed," Bellamy tells her confidently.

Clarke raises an eyebrow in amusement. Bellamy misses the first shot. And the second one. The third one almost looks like it's about to go on, but it bounces off and lands on the ground.

"Very impressive," Clarke says seriously.

"Thought so," Bellamy says, a smile playing on his lips.

"You almost as good at ring toss as you are at being a wingman," Clarke teases.

"Hey, I resent that," Bellamy says, mock offended.

"Please, you are so bad at wingmanning me, if I didn't know better, I'd say you were doing it on purpose."

Bellamy doesn't reply right away, and Clarke frowns at his guilty expression.

"Oh my god, are you doing it on _purpose_?" Clarke accuses.

"No!" Bellamy says quickly. "Well, not totally. I didn't set out to ruin your dates with Finn. I think it was subconscious."

"You subconsciously ruined my dates," Clarke repeats flatly.

"To be fair, I think you subconsciously wanted me to ruin them."

"That's not your call!"

"I know! I know. I'm sorry," Bellamy says, and he does seem genuinely sorry. He pauses. "Are you really into Finn? Cause if you are, I swear I'll—"

"Of course I'm not really into Finn," Clarke huffs. "He's self-centred and boring. But I can't have who I _actually_ want, and I thought Finn was a good distraction."

"Who do you actually want?"

Clarke ignores the question. "Why did you ruin my dates? Just because you thought I wasn't really into Finn?"

Bellamy shrugs. "That was partly it."

"And the other part?"

"I didn't want you to be with anyone else."

"Anyone else?"

"Other than me," Bellamy says, swallowing.

Clarke stares at him. She's sure she must have heard wrong. "But… but… you have a girlfriend," Clarke manages to choke out, despite her churning stomach and her whirring mind.

Bellamy frowns. "No, I don't."

"Octavia…" Clarke starts.

Bellamy looks aghast. "Clarke," he groans. "Oh my god. Octavia is my _sister_."

"Your sister."

"Definitely not my girlfriend."

"Oh."

Bellamy licks his lips. He steps a little closer to her, so their bodies are almost touching. "So, the person you actually want…" he murmurs. "I'm really, _really_ hoping it's me."

Clarke looks up at him, electricity running underneath her skin, his proximity making her head all foggy. "Obviously," she says. The word is barely out of her mouth before Bellamy's lips are on hers, her body moulding to his as his arms circle around her waist. The world spins, and Clarke clutches on to Bellamy, losing herself in his kiss.

Whether he kisses her like that for minutes or hours, Clarke can't say, but when he breaks the kiss, it's too soon. He doesn't let her go though. He brushes his lips across her face softly, and Clarke feels like she might die.

"I have wanted to do that since the second I saw you," Bellamy admits.

"If you had, it probably would have saved us a lot of trouble," Clarke breathes. Bellamy chuckles, and Clarke can feel it in his chest. "Are you going to tell everyone I thought Octavia was your girlfriend?"

"Of course," Bellamy grins. "That's hilarious."

"Well I'm going to tell everyone you sabotaged my dates instead of just asking me out yourself," Clarke tells him.

"That's fair."

"You know, in a way, Finn turned out to be _your_ wingman," Clarke muses. "And he was better than you at it, and he wasn't even trying."

"Yeah, but I'm the one who got the girl," Bellamy says. And then he kisses her again.


End file.
